The Breach
'' |image= |series= |production=40358-047/221 |producer(s)= |story= Daniel McCarthy |script= Chris Black and John Shiban |director= Robert Duncan McNeill |imdbref=tt0572249 |guests=Henry Stram as Hudak', Mark Chaet as Yolen, Laura Putney as Trevix, D.C. Douglas as Zepht and Jamison Yang as Crewman |previous_production=Horizon |next_production=Cogenitor |episode=ENT S02E21 |airdate=23 April 2003 |previous_release=Horizon |next_release=Cogenitor |story_date(s)=Unknown (2153) |previous_story=Horizon |next_story=Cogenitor }} =Summary= At the request of the Denobulan Science Academy, Enterprise goes to extract a group of three geologists from a planet where xenophobic militants have taken charge and decreed that all off-worlders must evacuate. Being experienced with caving, Ensign Mayweather is chosen to lead Commander Tucker and Lieutenant Reed on the underground rescue mission. They have only three days to return to the surface with the scientists before the negotiated government ceasefire expires. As the Enterprise nears the planet, it comes to the aid of an alien evacuee transport, suffering from a dangerous radiation leak. The most seriously injured of the various aliens brought aboard is Hudak, an Antaran, whose species has a centuries long history of conflict and animosity with the Denobulans. Though suffering from a fatal case of radiation poisoning, and being the first time the divorced species have interacted in generations, he immediately refuses help from Doctor Phlox. Archer orders Phlox to treat him, but he reluctantly declines, since Denobulan medical ethics places the patient's wishes above all other considerations. Underground, the crew make good progress, but Mayweather injures his leg. Leaving him behind, Reed and Tucker soon locate the Denobulan geologists, who are happily engaged in recording the various rare and precious geological features of the cavern. With time is running out, Tucker is insistent the group departs, but the scientists downplay the threat imposed to them, but finally assent. Back on the ship, using tact and diplomacy of his own, Phlox endeavors to help Hudak, but his initial attempts end in failure. Phlox, for his part, is also upset at the mutual hatred between the two species - but since Hudak refuses to be treated, Phlox must wait. Eventually, Hudak reflects on Phlox's words and agrees to the lifesaving procedure. A détente is then reached in which the three Denobulans are granted passage home aboard Hudak's vessel. Nit Central # Sparrow47 on Wednesday, April 23, 2003 - 7:22 pm: Did the whole bit with the patrol ship chasing them at the end seem kind of pointless to anyone else? inblackestnight on Friday, September 28, 2007 - 7:21 pm: Not the presence of the patrol ship but definately them firing on the shuttlepod. Trip said something like "they're just trying to put a fire under us" but just being there would accomplish the same thing. # Sooooo... Archer said that the planet they were visiting (can't remember name) was a haven for diversity... How, exactly could such a xenophobic group come to power? LUIGI NOVI on Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 1:30 am: They said that the government had been politically unstable for the past several years, and that a militant faction took control a couple of weeks ago. I don’t find this so difficult to believe. Our own history has one or two examples of the same thing happening. # I didn't hear anything about there being a native species to the planet. LUIGI NOVI on Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 1:30 am: Well, they said there was a government, and that a militant faction took over. Naturally, whenever we see an inhabited planet, we do assume that they’re natives, don’t we? # The Undesirable Element on Wednesday, April 23, 2003 - 7:50 pm: The Denobulans claim that they'll need help to get their samples out. How were they planning to get them out later? And how did all of that equipment get down there? That tunnel that Trip and Reed were crawling through near the end was tighter than T'Pol's uniform. Sparrow47 on Wednesday, April 23, 2003 - 7:59 pm: Well, I dunno about all the equipment, but I imagine they were thinking they'd have a much more lesiurely time getting out of the caves than they did, thus they could make multiple trips. LUIGI NOVI on Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 1:30 am: Perhaps the had other Denobulans to help them when they first got there, and who would return to the cavern their expedition was originally scheduled to end? # ScottN on Wednesday, April 23, 2003 - 11:02 pm: I missed Two Days and Two Nights, so I didn't know about Travis' climbing abilities. My question is, if he grew up as a boomer, where did he learn those skills? LUIGI NOVI on Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 1:30 am: Artificial rock-climbing facilities and walls they had built on the Horizon? There’s a rock climbing facility on Broadway and W60-something St. in New York City.Marc Lechowicz on Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 1:11 pm: Would they waste that much space on a cargo ship? LUIGI NOVI on Sunday, April 27, 2003 - 3:19 pm: Whether such a thing would be a “waste” is largely a matter of personal opinion. What if Travis and Paul’s father was an avid rock climber, and installed such a wall when he first got his own ship, and that this hobby was passed down to some of those who grew up on the Horizon, such as his kids? Remember, this is before replicators, etc. They'd need pretty much every spare cubic inch for supplies/cargo. LUIGI NOVI on Sunday, April 27, 2003 - 3:19 pm: Says who? Where has this been established? Do we know that they don’t devote a portion of their ship to recreational facilities? A gym? A movie screening room? An arboretum? And even such space is limited, do we know that all their cargo space is always filled to capacity on each run? If the Horizon regularly carries 30,000 metric tons, but has space for say, 31,000, I think there’s room to use one wall. Think of it this way: You walk into one of the cargo modules. Cargo containers are lined up and stacked. Now don’t there have to be aisles in between each set of stacks so that guys with inventory clipboards can walk around them to check the inventory? If one of those aisles is in between the module wall, and a row of cargo near the wall, why can’t that wall be used for climbing? Who says you need an entire empty cargo hold for it? Again, go to the rock climbing facility on Broadway in the lower 60’s, on the west side of the street. Just by looking inside from the sidewalk, you can see that it’s quite narrow. # Trike on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 2:51 am: I haven't seen the original series' Tribbles or the DS9 remake in quite some time, but I seem to remember that tribbles were unknown to the Federation at the time. Both McCoy and Spock studied them as though they were totally unfamiliar with them. Keith Alan Morgan (Kmorgan) on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 5:29 am: Yep, Trike. Cyrano Jones had to explain to everyone what a Tribble was, McCoy had to study them, only Jones knew about how fast they reproduced at first and at the end Jones was found guilty of transporting an animal that had proven to be harmful. Everything indicated that before The Trouble with Tribbles, Tribbles were unknown. TJFleming on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 7:24 am: :: So, apparently, were the Denobulans. So I gotta ask, who had the last laugh? And why is Hoshi afraid to talk?Heyst on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 9:49 am: Maybe Hoshi stopped talking because the 'soothing, calming' effect had started working on her and was suddenly stopped when the tribble was dropped in the cage (the one that Spock was immune to ;) )...Earlier I thought that only happened when someone held the tribble, but I guess just being in proximity is enough. The tribbles uncovered Arne Darvin just by being waved at him.The Undesirable Element on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 11:14 am: TRIBBLE TROUBLE: I think maybe the Tribbles were known to the Federation but not completely. As far as Phlox was concerned, they're just a good source of protein to his animals. Maybe it's just a footnote in the history books. ("TRIBBLE (noun): furry critter that tastes good dipped in Yamok sauce.") Maybe McCoy was not familiar with this one species. Think of how many animal species that would be known the Federation. He couldn't know all of them.LUIGI NOVI on Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 1:30 am: The episode plugs this up by having Phlox tell Hoshi that it is extremely hard to procure one because they’re banned on most planets. It’s not surprising that this didn’t stop Cyrano Jones. # TJFleming on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 7:24 am: How original. Nothing at all like, oh, Hawkeye treats a North Korean POW. Why is Phlox writing to his son at the end? What new piece of information is he offering that might change the son's mind about the Antarans? That Hudak submitted to medical treatment? How does that humanize ("Deobulize?") the Antarans? Anonymous on Thursday, April 24, 2003 - 8:59 am: Actually, this episode is completely different from Hawkeye treating a North Korean POW. As far as I can remember, Hawkeye never questioned whether or not to treat enemy soldiers--he always did, often butting heads in the process with Frank and wounded American soldiers who wanted to know why the enemy was being treated before one of their fellow soldiers. Here, we have Phlox struggling to decide what to do--to give into his own internal prejudices or to try and lead his life in the manner in which he taught his children. I think that is what he was writing to his son about at the end--his prejudice that he had to overcome when Archer ordered him to provide medical treatment to Hudak.LUIGI NOVI on Saturday, April 26, 2003 - 1:30 am: Phlox might simply want to make an emotional appeal. Using an anecdote is a way some people argue a point. Dustin Westfall on Saturday, May 17, 2003 - 6:15 pm: Phlox's reaction to Hudak/letter to Mettus: I apparently had a different take on the character's reactions than the rest of you. In my mind, Phlox didn't have buried prejudices against Hudak because he was Antaran (as seems to be the implication in the previous posts), he was prejudiced against Hudak because of his Hudak's beliefs. Basically, he hated Hudak for being a racist. Rather than try and convince Hudak to accept the treatment, he wrote him off as a lost cause and moved on, just as he apparently did with Mettus. Note the scene where Phlox finally reacts to Hudak's jabs. To the best of my recollection, he says something along the lines of, "No wonder none of my people could stand to be in the same room with you; all you do is hate." I don't believe Phlox ever says Denobulans or Antarans in that statement. It's rather obvious to fill them in, but I think it's reasonable to fill something else in as well. Replace "my people" with "enlightened people" and "you" with "bigots", and I could easily see the conversation happening between Phlox and Mettus. That's why he's writing at the end. Not to convince Mettus that he is wrong, but to reconnect with him in general. If it changes Mettus' views, all the better, but Phlox' main concern is to reconnect with someone important to him that he pushed away rather than dealing with him. Admirable Chrichton on Wednesday, February 25, 2004 - 6:13 am: Phlox's reaction to Hudak’s jabs goes as follows: Hudak goads Phlox that he wants to cure him to assuage his peoples guilt for what they did to Antara. He then taunts Phlox that he must have nightmares about his people due to the stories he must have heard. Hudak adds furthur salt to the wounds when he implies that Phlox has passed on these stories to his own children (He did no such thing as we find out later.). This angers Phlox who storms out of the room leading to this powerful scene. Hudak: What would your children think of their father treating an Antaran? Phlox: Enough!! H: Would they even want to be in the same room? P: I have tried to treat you with respect. But I refuse to listen to these insults! You're the reason why we haven't been able to put the past behind us, you've kept this hatred alive. No Denobulan would want to be in the same room as you! I agree along the lines of Dustin Westfall. Phlox in himself is not prejudiced towards the Antaran people. He explicitly states this in his conversation with T'pol. He is angered at Hudak and people like him (Mettus for one). Racist bigots who refuse to move on and keep the conflict going. I don't believe that Phlox is generalising about all Antarans being hatemongers in the aforementioned exchange. I believe that the you in that altercation is meant for Hudak (and subconciously in Phloxes mind, Mettus) and his vile unjustified bigotry towards Phlox and his people. I also do not believe that Phlox's shocked reaction at his first sight of the unconcious Hudak is due to racial hatred more like "this could be awkward" a veiw I believe many liberally minded Israeli doctors might feel at the sight of an unconcious Palestinian. When Phloxes worst fears are confounded when Hudak responds with hostility to him I feel he must feel that "I tried to bring Mettus round to a more liberal viewpoint, I failed. I have little chance with this guy, he would rather die than let me help him. Yet another fool willing to martyr himself due to his insane prejudices. There isn't much I can do but lament on the stupidity of the small minded bigots who let this situation get as bad as it is." It takes Archer to have a little talk and bring him round. # Trike on Monday, April 28, 2003 - 10:22 am: In Cease Fire, Phlox said he had served as a medic in the Denobulan infantry. Unless he were compelled into service, that would seem a strange choice for someone so opposed to the brutality the military had shown the Antarans. LUIGI NOVI on Monday, April 28, 2003 - 2:37 pm: Not if the Denobula of Phlox’s youth had moved on, and was no longer the same society as that of 300 years earlier. # Dustin Westfall on Saturday, May 17, 2003 - 6:15 pm: According to Phlox, there has been no Denobulan/Antaran contact in generations. If so, how are they able to instantly recognize each other so quickly. LUIGI NOVI on Sunday, May 18, 2003 - 10:04 am: Through pictures in their history books. # Given the number of species whose only apparent distinction is a variation of nose/forehead differences, I'd think identifying species on first sight would be difficult in general, let alone without contact for centuries. TJFleming on Monday, May 19, 2003 - 7:25 am: Not really. We tend to group people by their most apparent differences from us. Thus, Europeans might think someone "looks" Italian, Swedish, or Polish, but be unable to distinguish Chinese from Japanese from Korean (and conversely). We group RNAs together because of their funny noses, but they see major differences between themselves and other funny nose species. Category:EpisodesCategory:Enterprise